1. The Worlds First Civilization By Christian Musil, Sam Blythe, David Northey, Muhanid Aldasoqi, and William Chia

2. Geography  Mesopotamia is located in the Tigris-Euphrates river valley  They were located in what is now know as modern day Iraq  Mesopotamia in Greek means “between the rivers” This is a map of where the Mesopotamians were located.

3. War and Conflicts  There were many rival Mesopotamian civilizations that fought over many things such as territory  Mesopotamians fought often because of their geographical location  There were many gaps in the society

4. Technology  Agriculture  They transported on land with wheels  Used irrigation for water  Wrote in cuneiform  They traded through the Nile This is a picture of a wheel

5. Mesopotamian Society  The society was split into three basic ranks priests and government officials, normal citizens, slaves  Priests were ranked very high in Mesopotamian societies  Society changed depending on who was ruling at the time

6. Bureaucracy  Hammurabi’s Code of Laws  Based on the “eye for an eye” rule  For example, rule 195. If a son strike his father, his hand shall be hewn off. This is a picture of a part of Hammurabi’s Code of Laws

7. Mesopotamian Religion  Patron deities for each city  Figurines  There were many gods that they worshiped for such as the Gods of Sun, Sky, Earth, Water, and Storm

8. Economy  The Mesopotamians traded with many other societies including the Egyptians  They used the rivers to trade with other civilizations  They transported their goods on animals such as donkeys

9. Arts and Communication  Mesopotamians were able to convert their everyday conversations into cuneiform onto clay tablets  With cuneiform, Mesopotamians were able to record many things which made it possible for historians to learn about them today This is a clay tablet that has cuneiform, Mesopotamian writing, on it

10. Decline of Mesopotamia  Rival civilizations such as the Persian Empire were becoming more powerful  Famine, or scarcity of food  The people eventually disagreed to some of the orders that the Monarchy type of government asked for It is a picture of a crown to show that the Mesopotamian government was a Monarchy

11. Important Facts  Mesopotamia was the first civilization of the world  Mesopotamians were located in the Tigris- Euphrates river valley  The Mesopotamians traded with many other civilizations including Egypt  The Mesopotamians declined mainly because of rival civilizations  They created many important items useful for transportation such as the wheel

12.  "Cunieform." Edsite. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2011..  "Foundations." Foundations. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2011..  HARTMAN, L. F., et al. "Mesopotamia, Ancient." New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2nd ed. Vol. 9. Detroit: Gale, 2003. 525-538. Gale World History In Context. Web. 27 Sep. 2011.  “Mesopotamia." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras. ABC-CLIO, 2011. Web. 27 Sept. 2011  "Sumerians." CHW3M World History. Kevin Leibold, 2006. Web. 26 Sept. 2011..  Way of the World. Bostion: BEDFORD/ST.MARTIN'S, 2009. N. page. Print.  "Writing." Mesopotamian Writing. British Mueseum, n.d. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.. Citations